And the people of Israel cried to the LORD, saying: And again renders the Hebrew waw conjunction. Here it introduces the response of the Israelites to their suffering, so it may be translated “So” (New Revised Standard Version) or “Then” (Good News Translation, New International Version). Once again the people of Israel is literally “the children of Israel” (see verse 1.1). Translators should try to be consistent in their rendering of this phrase. Cried to the LORD is the Israelites’ regular response to trouble (verse 3.9, 15; verse 6.6-7). As elsewhere, they repented and called to the LORD for help. The text does not talk about repenting or confessing, but this is implied. Contemporary English Version says “They begged the LORD for help and confessed.”
We have sinned against thee: The Hebrew verb rendered have sinned (chataʾ) is not used frequently in this book, but it is very common in the Old Testament, meaning to break or disobey God’s Law. The LORD uses this word when he speaks to Moses in Exo 32.33, and the Israelites use it when confessing their sins to the LORD in Num 14.40. Pharaoh even uses it to admit his sin in Exo 9.27. In this context it expresses what the Israelites did when they “did evil in the sight of the LORD” (verse 10.6). Thee is the old English pronoun used by Revised Standard Version to address God. Good News Translation and most other English versions use the pronoun “you.” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has a very expressive rendering for this clause, saying “We stand guilty before You.” Some languages may prefer to change this direct quote into an indirect one, but doing this may rob the text of its power and emphasis.
Because we have forsaken our God and have served the Baals: Because (literally “and because”), which renders the Hebrew waw conjunction and the particle ki, introduces the explanation of how the people sinned. Other possible connectors are “for” (Good News Translation, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “in that,” and “since.” However, the particle ki may be an emphatic marker here. For example, Boling renders it “indeed.” For we have forsaken our God, see verse 2.12. Since God is being addressed here, some languages may prefer to say “we have abandoned you, our God.” For have served the Baals, see verse 2.11.
Translation models for this verse are:
• So the people of Israel confessed to the LORD, saying, “We have sinned against you, our God, by turning our backs on you and worshiping the Canaanite gods, the Baals.”
• Then the Israelites confessed their sins against Yahweh: “Our God, we stand guilty before you. Indeed, we have abandoned you to serve the idols of Baal, the god of Canaan.”
Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .